


closet crush

by pastelish



Category: Elena of Avalor (Cartoon)
Genre: M/M, primarily gabteo, w/ very brief mentions of elenaomi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-22
Updated: 2017-05-22
Packaged: 2018-11-02 03:06:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,423
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10935693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pastelish/pseuds/pastelish
Summary: He hears Gabe sniff the air."Is that?"Mateo holds his breath when Gabe's face comes dangerously close to his neck. He'd never been so grateful for the dark."Why do you smell like mango?"





	closet crush

**Author's Note:**

> Alright, I wrote and finished this nearly a month ago and never finished editing(rip), but I found it again and figured I should finish it up since it was nearly done anyway ((bec otherwise, It'll prob just rot in my folders lol)))
> 
> Hope you guys enjoy! ;0

Thinking was something Mateo was quite fond of. Or just simple subconscious thinking. So it wasn't anything new whenever he began rethinking aspects of himself that he would face in his daily life, such as his position as the Royal Wizard or his general clumsiness.

He accumulated much more self-worth and confidence over time with the aid of his friends, but it never did fully diminish his insecurities. Heck, even having friends was a concept he'd sometimes find hard to believe. But one thing he learned the past few years, along with turning eighteen, was that having friends is nice.

Throughout his childhood, Mateo didn't make much friends, so it was a good change for him. It was a way to better his social skills too.

Although, out of all his friends and acquaintances, Gabe was the one person he held mixed feelings for.

Initially, Gabe was—to put it simply—a bully. The moment he'd met him, he just sensed the fact that the older male was perturbed of something about him, or he plainly did not like him at all. They'd fought, and he was annoying for most the time, but he learned to fight him back along the process, and somehow, they even ended up becoming friends.

They'd fight occasionally. Maybe over some silly disagreement, or something serious, but both were still able to bounce back the same and come back to their mild bickering and conversations.

Mateo had come to know him a lot better. He'd grown more attached to him too.

And that's when he noticed how attractive Gabe was.

Mateo knew for the most part of his life that he was never attracted to people the same way he would hear his classmates at school salivate over a girl's latest outfit. He felt indifferent; romance and attraction was just never his top priority. There was always something much better to occupy himself with than suffocate his thoughts with that one person.

His case with Gabe had happened so slowly. Before he knew it, he found himself blatantly staring at him and he didn't even know. He had many pleasant features. The deep brown of his eyes, the smooth slope of his nose, the slender shape of his lips, the angled curve of his jawline—

Okay, maybe he'd spend _too_ much time staring.

Gabe was a very pretty person, and Mateo wonders how he never noticed it before. Although, thinking about it now, his bad attitude was most likely the culprit preventing the wizard from seeing him in that light.

His thoughts delved too deep every now and then—in his standards at least. His mind would ponder situations of holding hands, casting a spell that would bring him closer, and maybe even kissing.

But, being realistic, Mateo knew he had zero chances with the older male. As _if_ Gabe would ever like him back, and he chose to view it like that. He'd stay in his own lane, keep his thoughts to himself, and appreciate him from a safe distance. Of course, that wouldn't stop his heart from aching, but it was good for himself and he'd keep it that way for as long as he could.

So, when the _incident_ happened, Mateo was left severely confused.

Elena was throwing Isabel a party at the castle for her birthday, and she had invited Naomi, Gabe, and himself to help out and celebrate with the family. He offered his magical abilities for simple party tricks to entertain the guests and it was an expected success. But as the party went on, Mateo found himself dragged into playing hide and seek with Isabel and her friends. He couldn't say no, plus the others were willing to play. Elena and Naomi were ecstatic, and he could hear Elena giddily whisper something to Naomi about the perfect hiding spot.

Gabe was entirely unexcited compared to the others, but with some persuasion from Elena, he was eventually agreeing in mild defeat.

Isabel was chosen to be the seeker in honor as the Birthday girl, and everyone ran as quickly as they could at the beginning of the count.

Mateo made a straight bee line to his workshop. It was the obvious choice for him, really. Isabel would know where he was and find him eventually, but he was relying on the kids finding the others first. As he sped through the throngs of people, Mateo accidentally bumped into one of the castle servants. The silverware and tray clattered unceremoniously against the tile and the juice splattered all across his shirt.

So much for his mom starching and ironing it; he _did_ tell her it was unnecessary.

The servant lady gasped. "I deeply apologize; I didn't mean to bump into you like that,"

She leaned down to gather up the pitcher and cups. There fortunately wasn't any glassware as Mateo got on his knees to help her.

"No, no, it's fine," he reassured. "I should apologize, I'm sorry for bumping into you," Mateo swept the juice off the floor with the dropped rag and handed it back to the lady.

"I'm really sorry about that," he bowed and took off, remembering the game was still going even with his mess up.

"But—your shirt!"

"It's okay; I'm sorry about the spill!" he called back before turning a corner and resuming his race to his hiding spot.

Isabel's voice echoed from the hallway they started. He stopped for a moment to try to hear what number she was on and panicked once he realized she was on ten.

There wasn't enough time to go to his workshop, so Mateo hurriedly rushed to hide in a closet instead. Light seeped in from the crack underneath the door frame and he stepped back to veil himself more into the shadows. Mateo almost fell from bumping into something behind him. A glance back provided that it was only a small stool. He stepped onto the platform and it lifted him off the ground a couple inches.

Mateo surveyed the room he found himself in. It was a small supply closet from what he could see. The minimal amount of light allowed him to make out the bristles of a broom near the door and some cleaning supplies he tripped over along his walk back.

He sniffed, expecting the smell of dust or bleach, but was hit with the strong aroma of mango. With a hint of pineapple? And maybe an essence of lemon? He realized the smell was coming from his shirt. The amount of time it took him to acknowledge that had him hitting a palm to his forehead.

Mateo felt his ears burn in embarrassment. Why did he need to make a fool of himself, even if they were only playing hide and seek?

He sighed. It would've been perfect if he actually did make it to his workshop. That way he could've hid and done something productive there instead of standing in a dark supply closet waiting for his inevitable fate.

Time ticked by and he still wasn't found. Mateo repeated spells in his head for practice as he waited. Now that he thought about it, him hiding in his workshop was way more obvious than him hiding in a closet. The others would never guess he'd hide in here and he wasn't sure if that was a good or a bad thing.

It had been a while now, at least ten minutes, since Isabel started seeking. Actually, why _couldn't_ he just move over to his workshop? No one was stopping him and Isabel would for sure have found at least one other person, so his chances of being 'it' were limited. He made certain his decision, but just as he stepped one foot off the stool, the door opened.

Mateo stiffened up against the wall,—honestly, a sad attempt to try to hide in the shadows—but there wasn't anyone there. He stared at the open door, puzzled. Suddenly, somebody slipped into the closet and closed the door. The sudden lapses of light messed with his sight, eyes attempting to adjust back to the dimness of the room.

The person seemed to have the same idea of backing up in the closet though, because even with his lack of seeing, Mateo could tell they were stepping back. He let out a noise when the person's back collided with his front.

"What the—"

The voice sounded so familiar, but he couldn't place a finger on it. Mateo blinked a couple more times to get used to the dark, gasping audibly once they adjusted.

"Gabe?"

"Mateo?"

They exclaimed in unison. Mateo shook his head to refocus his vision. He wasn't seeing things right?

"What are you doing here?"

Gabe made a face. "Shouldn't I be asking _you_ that?"

Mateo was about to retort, but Gabe holds a finger up to his lips.

"Shhh,"

It was silent. Then, he heard it.

The sound of foot steps reverberated in the hall. And not just two or three, it sounded like an entire stampede. The stampede steadily grew louder.

Gabe inched back just a tiny bit from the door, and his back made contact with the other teen's front in the process. Mateo blushed. Wow, he would have never imagined himself to be put in such a cliché situation, with his crush nonetheless.

There was shouting along with the stomping.

"Gaaaabe!"

_"Gabe!"_

"Cheater!"

"We saw you, you're not supposed to run away!"

"Come out already!"

_"Gaaaabe!"_

Mateo shot him a look of disbelief. Gabe must've sensed it because he briefly turned his head to glance at the other, replying with a small shrug.

But the rushing stampede doesn't stop and eventually recedes after a few more moments. When the ruckus dissipates down a hallway and all the noise he could hear was the faraway sound of the party, Mateo released the breath he had been holding in.

"What reason did you have for running away when they found you?" The wizard accused, putting a hand to his hip.

Gabe rotated in his spot, and Mateo noticed they were actually the same height. He thanked the stool for the advantage; at least he didn't need to be looking up at him, even if it'd probably only last a few minutes.

"For your information, one of the kids told Isabel where I hid,"

"So you ran instead of getting caught?"

"Yep,"

Mateo laughed, "Definitely a solid example of a twenty-year-old playing hide and seek,"

Gabe scoffed and jokingly jabbed an elbow at him.

"Ow," Mateo pouts, elbowing him in return.

A small second ticks by. He hears Gabe sniff the air.

"Is that?"

Mateo holds his breath when Gabe's face comes dangerously close to his neck. He'd never been so grateful for the dark.

"Why do you smell like mango?"

He pulls back, but Mateo is sure his heart is still stopped.

"L—Long story,"

"Hmm,"

Suddenly, Gabe perked up in his spot. "Oh no, I think they're coming back,"

"Could you scoot over some?"

"What? Gabe, there isn't room for two on this stool,"

"Scoot over, Mateo! They'll see my feet below the door!"

"But it'll collapse if you stand on it!"

"Just scoot over!"

Mateo reluctantly stepped off to the side. But as Gabe took one step on, the entire stool upturned.

"Woah!"

Mateo tried to grab something to steady himself but could only grasp air and some brooms and mops resting against the wall. Before he knew it, his back was hitting the floor and he squeezed his eyes shut expecting the impact of whatever he dragged down with him.

Though the barrage of cleaning supplies never came as Mateo opened his eyes to see Gabe above him. All the brooms he knocked over came crashing onto the other male. Mateo winced with every single item that fell onto his frame up until the last one that hit the back of Gabe's head.

"Oww..."

"Sorry..." Mateo mustered.

Gabe shook himself off.

"It's no..."

"...problem..."

The younger teen gazed at Gabe's lips as they tapered. He looked to his eyes and noted a small glimmer of realization. At that exact moment, Mateo acknowledged it as well.

They were too close. Way too close. Gabe had his forearms caged around Mateo's head from shielding him along with his legs tangled up in a mess he couldn't see. He laid partially on the younger teen and the wizard could feel the firmness of his build. A dark blush lit up Mateo's cheeks.

The light seeping in from under the door allowed him to see much clearer, especially when they were on the ground.

He glanced up to the teen above him—a daring move in such a crisis—and was surprised at his reaction. Gabe seemed to have noticed their position because his face looked to be a few shades darker than when he last peeked. But, he couldn't be blushing. Why would he blush? He mused that it was probably just the lighting.

As he examined more of his face, he saw Gabe's stare. It was the kind of stare that made him feel like Gabe was reading into his very soul.

Mateo burned under his gaze. Why was he looking at him like that?

But then, light flooded the small room and Mateo saw his face clearly.

Woah. He really was blushing.

"I knew I should've checked—!"

Naomi was at the door. He glanced back and forth between Gabe and Naomi, settling on the former to watch his face slowly contort to a look of horror. He was blushing still.

"Oh..." Naomi snorted, and let out a small giggle.

"Elena!"

Gabe attempted to untangle himself from Mateo's limbs, but was unsuccessful as Elena was peeking in only a second after Naomi's call.

"Oh my..." Elena smiled.

"I told you guys we should've checked the closets,"

"I didn't think either of them would actually hide in one though,"

"I—It's not what it looks like," Gabe finally separated himself, standing up to straighten his uniform. Mateo stood up as well too, eyes still locked on Gabe's face and mind trying to piece things together. If he wasn't so doubtful of the reasons for Gabe's blush, he could've noted that his face actually appeared more flushed than before.

Elena and Naomi exchanged amused grins.

"Sure it's not, Gabe," Naomi comments, which has Gabe glaring daggers at the other.

The older male made his way out of the closet with a frown; the girls snickering as he trudged past. Mateo walked out too, but not before picking up the supplies and placing them back where they laid before. He closed the closet door, brushing the dust off his robe, when the still-smiling duo came up to ask him.

"How was it?" Naomi punched his arm and Mateo rubbed at it in slight pain.

"How was what?"

"Well, you and Gabe hiding in the closet together," Elena jumps in at his other side.

"Was something supposed to happen?" He's pretty sure he knows what they're implying, but he ignores it.

"Aww, you party pooper," Naomi pouts.

Elena smiles and shoots the other girl a look that probably translated to 'stop bothering him' because Naomi smiles back in acknowledgement.

"They'll be restarting the game soon anyway; Let's go before Cat starts counting off," Elena mentions.

Naomi nods and they begin to make their way back to the starting spot in a mess of giggles.

Mateo watches them run off, lagging behind with his mind still clouded of the events with Gabe. It wasn't until he heard a shout that he realized his slow pace.

"Come on, Mateo!" Elena called.

Mateo blinks out of his stupor.

"R—Right!"

* * *

 

For the next few days, Mateo finds himself thinking back to the incident. I mean, how could he not? So many questions began cumulating in his mind that at some points he'd felt like combusting. It wasn't entirely impossible. There was probably a spell for it, but Mateo knew he would never go that far, even if he was met with the dull reality of succumbing to the one thing he specifically did not want to become: someone obsessed over a crush. Mateo's thoughts were only of Gabe now and he despised it.

Why was Gabe blushing? It was the one question that persistently haunted him in his every move. Gabe didn't like him that way, so it made no sense at all. Maybe he was just embarrassed to be seen like that in front of Elena and Naomi? The weird thing was that he was already blushing before the door opened. Though, there was a solid probability that the light had been playing tricks with his eyes the entire time too. It could've been that, but there was no denying the color of his face, especially when they opened the door.

Mateo shook his head, proceeding to grind the ingredients in the mortar with a tiny bit more force from his frustrations. Even with the task of making a potion, Gabe still managed to crawl into his thoughts and pester him like he'd been doing the past few days.

Isabel's birthday party didn't happen that long ago, so he was mostly hoping he'd get over this little thing in the next following weeks.

It was hard to focus on his work with the constant cloud hovering above his head, but he tried his best to keep him out as much as he could by thinking of other things, like his potion for example. He directed all his attention on the task at hand. It helped that it was an important one he was not supposed to make a mistake on. One slip up could cause the entire thing to blow up in his face.

Eventually, Mateo's thoughts were Gabe-free. He started humming a song as he worked, carefully measuring some more ingredients to add to the mix.

"Hey,"

Mateo almost dropped the bottle and measuring cup in his hands. Well, actually, he _did_ drop them, but caught them haphazardly before they could fall. He glanced up to the workshop entrance and felt his jaw drop.

 _Gabe_.

"Woah, careful there," Said person chuckled at his clumsy display. _Darn him._

Mateo must've been making a face because Gabe pauses momentarily at his spot.

"Oh... sorry," He steps back. "Am I not welcome here?"

Mateo blinks and shakes his head, "No, no, you're fine. Sorry, I—I was too concentrated on this,"

Gabe offers a smile.

"Elena told me to check up on you," He approached, "But I'm sure she just needed a reason to kick me out of the room,"

"How come?"

"Naomi's over,"

"Ohhh," Mateo nodded in understanding. It wasn't unusual for the two unofficial, but pretty official, love birds to need some time to themselves, so of course, Gabe would be politely asked to leave every other day.

"Mind if I hang here for the mean time?"

"I don't mind," Mateo said.

"Thanks," Gabe flashed his trademark smile and Mateo's heart throbbed.

"What are you doing there?" He leaned over the counter.

Mateo glanced down at his jumble of bottles and ingredients cluttered around the space.

"Making a potion,"

Gabe hummed. "What's the one your making?"

"It's a potion to cure a toad sickness spell,"

"That's a thing?"

"Yes, but it's really rare these days,"

"Huh," Gabe continued to watch him stir the ingredients around. After a minute, he turned to one of the books he'd left on the counter.

"Could I look through this?"

"Go ahead," He thanked the stars; he didn't think he could've endured more of Gabe watching him without tripping and messing something up.

Mateo spared a glance at Gabe who—interestingly enough—actually appeared intrigued by the book. It was another spell book previously shelved in the workshop. He'd read over it a couple times because it contained more useful spells he could use in battle. He focused back on his potion and felt his mind wander to Gabe.

All his thoughts and ideas of the other he'd been trying so hard to push away came back in a rush. Suddenly, the memory of the closet incident popped up in his head. Mateo was glad Gabe was too interested in the book because boy, his cheeks were probably the color of his own robe. It brought up the question as well, the one he'd been pondering on the past few days. Mateo was never even planning on asking, but it was an itch that needed to be scratched and Gabe was conveniently right here with him alone.

He stopped mixing the ingredients and prepared to say it out loud.

"H—Hey, Gabe?"

The older male looked up from perusing a page. "Yeah?"

"I've been meaning to ask, but..." Mateo paused and took a breath, "Why were you blushing?"

Gabe raised a brow, slowly dropping the book on the counter. "What?"

"B—Back then, in the closet, when you fell on me," He couldn't stop himself from stuttering, "You were blushing,"

Gabe blinked once. Twice.

He was about to tell him to forget it, to pretend like he didn't ask such a weird question out-of-the-blue, but Gabe beats him to it.

"I..." He watches Gabe swallow. "Are you seriously asking me that?" He laughs.

Mateo regrets asking.

"Y—Yes?" He raises an eyebrow. Well, why wouldn't he ask that? Was he supposed to know why?

Gabe gawks at him and rubs the back of his neck. "Well, I mean, I would've thought you'd have assumed why by now," The way he looks up through his lashes is killing him, but Mateo has to act cool, has to pretend like Gabe's very presence did not make him feel like melting into a puddle on the floor.

But he's supposed to know? He felt stupid now, because he definitely did not know. There's only one solid reason why he would blush, but Mateo just couldn't believe it to be near the truth.

"I..." Gabe's surveying the floor and heaving a sigh, "I didn't think I'd need to say this so soon,"

Mateo gulps.

"I may..." His lips formed a straight line. "Uhhh, wait,"

The fact that Gabe was struggling so much to say what he wanted to say was already strange enough, so it was even more of a surprise when a familiar dark red begun to spread across his cheeks.

_There it was again._

"I don't know how else to say this without being outright," Gabe sighed.

"Well," He hesitated just slightly before resolutely enunciating.

"I like you,"

Mateo blinked.

"What?"

Gabe appeared crestfallen at his reaction and rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah..."

"No,"

"No?"

"No, you can't like me,"

"I can't?"

"I—It's impossible," Mateo stammered.

Gabe just told him he liked him. The single thing he'd been deeming couldn't _possibly_ be the answer.

He peered up, looking significantly less disappointed.

"You can't like me..."

"What if I do?" Hope lights up Gabe's eyes as he leans over the counter and looms over the shorter teen.

Mateo feels his cheeks burning. Was he blushing too? Augh, gosh.

He hadn't even noticed it, but Gabe had made his way around the counter and right at the spot next to his. Gabe placed his fingers beneath his chin and tenderly turned his head to face him. Mateo became painfully aware of his heart thudding loudly against his rib cage.

"Do you like me too?"

Mateo doesn't answer. It was difficult to form words when the guy he'd been pining over had just unveiled that he actually liked him back.

Gabe chuckles though, and Mateo assumes his blush and previous words were enough of an answer.

"I'm guessing that's a yes," He looks away for a split second, but when he glances back, his eyes are dead set on his lips. "If so, can I kiss you?"

Mateo is sure his soul is somewhere up in heaven right about then. The graze of his fingers against his skin was already enough to make his heart pound. He surprises himself for being able to manage a nod in response.

The light touch of his fingers molds into a burning palm against his cheek, slowly directing his face towards the other. Gabe's eyes are shut as he comes closer and closer, until Mateo feels his lips come in contact with his.

Mateo's eyelids fluttered shut. He chose to savour the moment as much as he could, allowing himself to indulge in the feeling of actually kissing Gabe.

It was soft and tender in a way he wouldn't have anticipated a kiss with the older male, but it wasn't unpleasant in the slightest. Gabe's hand pulls his face closer. He tilted his head at an angle and pressed forward, applying small pliant movements against his lips that has Mateo feeling light-headed.

But then, the older male is pulling away—maybe just a bit too quickly for his taste—and Mateo opens his eyes again at the loss of warmth.

The first thing he sees is the flushed and joyous look on Gabe's face. Mateo still finds it hard to believe that he wasn't dreaming.

He reached a hand up and pulled one of Gabe's cheeks.

"Oww! Mateo," He grumbled.

The wizard released the pinched skin, staring at the pouting male in awe.

"Wow, you really are real,"

Gabe snorts, "Duh, I just kissed you,"

Mateo blushes. "Y—You just kissed me,"

A smirk creeps onto Gabe's face. "I can do it again if you need further proof that I'm real,"

Mateo would've spat out his drink—if he was even drinking anything in the first place.

"Actually, maybe I do,"

Gabe's smirk widens. "Good, because I was gonna do it anyway,"

He swoops in to catch his lips in a small peck, before backing away. Mateo knew his face was definitely the same shade as his robe now.

"Okay, I think I have enough proof,"

"No, hold on,"

"I know you're real, Gabe,"

"You don't look like you fully think I'm real,"

Mateo deadpans. "Gabe,"

"Let me prove it to you again,"

"Nooooo, Gabe!" Mateo has to put a hand on Gabe's persistent face that _just wouldn't stop coming closer._

Gabe takes advantage of the block and kisses his palm instead. His affection makes the wizard put a palm to his forehead, partly to show his distress, but more so to hide his embarrassment.

Although Gabe's laughter bubbles loud and noisy out of his throat, Mateo thinks it's the sweetest sound he's heard all week.


End file.
